


Turbulence

by emberpaw



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Airplanes, Comedy, Funny, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-01
Updated: 2018-08-11
Packaged: 2019-05-31 13:07:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,993
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15120047
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/emberpaw/pseuds/emberpaw
Summary: You'd think that in an 11 hour flight from Seoul to L.A. there wouldn't be much room for romance. You'd think that. And you'd be wrong.





	1. Boarding

“Shouldn’t you be a bit more excited, considering you’re getting married?”

 

“Huh?”

 

Jongin glances over at his best friend, who’s fixated on scrolling through his instagram feed for the umpteenth time. His gaze doesn’t leave his phone and Jongin shakes his head in astonishment.

 

“Chanyeol? Hello?”

 

His best friend doesn’t respond, and Jongin’s lip twitch in amusement.

 

“My penis is blue.” Jongin states, casually checking his boarding pass for his seat.

 

“Sure.”

 

Jongin sighs dreamily. “Don’t you just want to fuck a tree sometimes?”

 

“Oh yeah.”

 

Chanyeol’s expression is serious, and Jongin can’t help but giggle at the ridiculousness. For some reason, Jongin laughing is what brings Chanyeol out of his trance and he spares a confused glance at his friend. He frowns.

 

“What’s so funny?” He asks, and Jongin continues laughing at Chanyeol’s obliviousness.

 

Chanyeol shrugs, and then puts his phone away. He stands on his tiptoes, trying to see over the crowd of people.

 

“There are supposed to be two lines right? It just looks like a blob of people…” He grumbles. He takes a sip of the overpriced water bottle Jongin had insisted they buy because “the water served in airplanes is obviously mixed in with pee.”

 

“It’s fine, we all get in eventually.” Jongin slides his backpack off his shoulders and opts instead to carry it in his hand. He sighs relaxedly, rubbing his stiff muscles. Chanyeol raises an eyebrow at his friend.

 

“Jongin? Why are you so calm?” He asks tentatively, taking another gulp of the water. Jongin freezes for a moment, before flashing a lazy smile. “I took four Xanax this morning.”

 

Chanyeol nearly chokes on his water.

 

“W-What?!”

 

“Ugh, don’t spit on me,” Jongin wipes the invisible water droplets off of his 300$ shirt.

 

Chanyeol can’t believe his ears. “You took drugs?” He asks incredulously.

 

“Not drugs. Xanax. They’re on like whole other levels.” Jongin points out.

 

“It’s still a drug!” Chanyeol protests worriedly.

 

“Relax dude… I’m gonna sleep for the entire flight anyway.”

 

“If you come to my wedding high…” Chanyeol starts, sending a warning glare at Jongin. Said man laughs it off, poking Chanyeol’s side teasingly. “I’ll be fine, stop being such a mom. And why are you worrying about me? You’re the one getting married.” Chanyeol’s expression shifts into one of indifference.

 

He shrugs, “Doesn’t feel like that… Never thought I’d meet my future wife for the first time on the wedding night.” Chanyeol chuckles awkwardly. Jongin places a consoling hand on his shoulder.

 

“At least she’s in the same boat as you.”

 

“What do you mean?

 

“Well, if she wanted to get with you and was all like ‘ooh yeah yeollie is so sexy’, wouldn’t that be way worse? If you both are sort of passive about the wedding, it won’t be as much of a commitment.” Chanyeol nods slowly, Jongin’s explanation actually making sense to him.

 

“Wow, that actually sort of makes me feel better.”

 

Jongin flips his hair back dramatically, “Of course, I’m a genius.”

 

“When you’re on drugs.” Chanyeol clarifies, rolling his eyes at Jongin.

 

“That has nothing to do with it!” Jongin exclaims, hoping it actually has nothing to do with it.

 

“Can’t believe we aren’t sitting beside each other.” Chanyeol suddenly remarks, glancing bitterly at the boarding pass in his hand.

 

“Aww, are you concerned about me?” Jongin coos, smiling.

 

“Now I’m probably gonna sit beside a baby or something…” Chanyeol mutters, and he receives a poke at his side. “Hey!” Jongin pouts.

 

Chanyeol grins teasingly.

 

“You know, I think I like you better on drugs.” Chanyeol realizes, and this time he earns a sharp jab to his stomach, knocking the air out of him. Jongin grunts angrily, “That’s what you get.”

 

Chanyeol glares at Jongin, before raising his hands above his head, trying to regain his breath. Jongin starts laughing beside him, “You look like an idiot Chanyeol…” Chanyeol’s earns turn a bright shade of red.

 

“I-It’s b-been proven that when you c-can’t breathe you have to raise your arms above your head!” Chanyeol stammers out an explanation, and Jongin nods knowingly. “Right, right, but you still look like an idiot.” Chanyeol immediately drops his arms in frustration, realizing that with his height and gangly arms he probably _does_ look like an idiot.

 

“I take that back, I’m glad I’m not sitting beside you!” Chanyeol huffs indignantly, a little breathless. He then purposefully moves as far ahead in the line to get away from Jongin. His friend easily catches up.

 

“You know you love me.” He says, and Chanyeol rolls his eyes, trying his best to be angry at his best friend. Which proves impossible and he sighs in defeat.

 

“Yeah, yeah, I love you…” He mutters, and Jongin slaps him on the back wholeheartedly.

 

“That’s my Chanyeol!” Jongin crows, his arm awkwardly slung over Chanyeol’s shoulders, their height difference painfully apparent.

 

“Still, are you sure you’ll be okay? The last time you were on a plane…” Chanyeol begins, his voice full of concern.

 

Jongin groans in annoyance, sliding his hand off Chanyeol’s shoulder. “Dude. I’m gonna be fine. Don’t worry about me.” He reassures.

 

Chanyeol eventually nods, his worry dissipating at the sight of Jongin confidently smiling at him. “Yeah… Okay, just, be careful.” Chanyeol says, and Jongin presses his hand to his forehead in a salute. “Sir yes sir!” He answers seriously, and Chanyeol can’t help but let out a small laugh at Jongin. The other man chuckles a little, before focusing on the now short line in front of them.

 

He’s going on a plane. To fly.

 

And suddenly Jongin’s breath quickens, his hand tightening around the backpack strap.

 

_I hope I’ll be fine._

\----

“Well tell them to push it back!” Yifan growls, and then turns off his phone before there’s a chance for a response.

 

_Fucking hell._

 

This business meeting could not have come at a worse time. Naturally, as the CEO of Wu Corporations he’s already drowning in his duties of watching over the company. And on top of that, he’s working on assignments not even in his job description, although this is Yifan’s fault as he doesn’t trust half his employees to properly complete their tasks and so he takes it upon himself to do their work.

 

And he now has to fly across the fucking planet to attend a business meeting. God knows why _he’s_ the one who has to fly over.

 

_Inconsiderate bastards._

 

Yifan feels people try to force themselves past him. He sends them a death glare, his eyes narrowed. They apologetically smile and step back. There is now at least a meter between Yifan and the nearest person. Yifan smirks.

 

_Good._

 

This is how it should be. Him, and them. Although there wouldn’t be a “them” if his ticket was first class, but no he is forced to mix in with these poor civilians, sit on a 11 hour flight in a horribly cheap chair, be force fed disgusting food, and all for what?

 

Just so he can buy out a small company.

 

A tiny company.

 

It wasn’t even his idea. It was his fathers, who insisted that “if we buy Huang Corporations, we can fully control the cell phone accessory business.”

 

Huang Corporations manufactures key chains. For phones. Which Yifan thinks is the most despicable of the phone accessory business. Who wants to buy a keychain for their phone? It’s an inconvenience, and they are never aesthetically pleasing. But not everybody thinks like Yifan, and because of this Huang Corporations managed to stay afloat, selling to stupid people who think phone keychains are the newest trend.

 

And now Wu Corporations is going to buy them out. Yifan figures a small company like that would probably go for a couple million and this will be it. A quick business meeting. He’ll intimidate them from minute one, make a whole speech about how gracious he is and how they should be grateful. By the end, they’ll probably be on their knees begging.

 

The thought brings a dark smile to Yifan’s lips. If there’s one thing Yifan enjoys more than making money, it’s making other people feel small. The moment where they start to grovel, their eyes downcast, like little dogs at his feet. Yifan feels a shiver run through him at the thought. He can’t wait to see the look on the CEO’s face.

 

But, before that, he has to get through this damn flight.

 

_Fucking hell._

\----

Baekhyun has a problem.

 

And it isn’t that his makeup is smudged, or that his hair is messy. (because if that was the problem, Baekhyun would’ve killed himself by now).

 

No, his problem is much more…

 

Well.

 

Baekhyun has a boner.

 

And it’s a rager.

 

He isn’t sure why it’s there, but it is, and it has no intention of leaving.

 

Baekhyun taps his foot impatiently as he waits in line to board the plane. He briefly contemplates running to the washroom and taking care of his _problem_. A couple whacks and he would be done.

 

But he dismisses the thought. Partly because jerking off in an airport bathroom would be a new  low for him. But mainly because of an inexplicable feeling Baekhyun has about his boner. It’s odd. This one is like no other he’s had before. For some reason, Baekhyun  thinks quickly masturbating alone in a bathroom isn’t going to fully solve his problem.

 

No, his problem is coming from somewhere else, deep inside him. A desire, one that has been building up over the years.

 

Baekhyun is a virgin. He has no trouble admitting it. Although he never had to, because no one thought to ask. After all, we’re talking about the Byun Baekhyun here, the goddess of man, with a beautiful face, somehow thick yet slim legs, and a great ass. How could this seemingly perfect specimen still be a virgin?

 

Well the simple answer is, Baekhyun hasn’t found the _one_. After all, he isn’t going to let just anyone take his virginity. No, it has to be someone special. Someone exactly his type.

 

He has no problem with waiting. At least, he thought he had no problem, but it seems his body has different ideas.

 

He’s had boners before obviously, and he took care of them quickly and almost mechanically. But Baekhyun has a feeling this is the last straw. This isn’t any other boner. And he doesn’t think it’s going to leave anytime soon.

 

His penis is sending him a message, Baekhyun decides. It’s now or never. Whether he finds his _one_ or not, it’s time to do something about this knot he feels reside deep in the pit of his stomach. This want. This _need._

 

Baekhyun sighs, running his hand through his hair. He took this vacation to get away from his family, to have some time to himself. Well that’s not happening, he realizes.

 

And now he has to spend 11 hours on a flight with his _problem._

 

_Great._

\----

“Would you stop jumping around? You’re like a little girl…” Jongdae grumbles, looking anywhere but at his friend who’s busy hopping excitedly.

 

“I can’t help it! I can’t believe this is happening, it’s so crazy!” Kyungsoo exclaims, his eyes the shape of two crescent moons and his lips curved upward in a blinding smile.

 

“I can’t believe you’ve never been on a plane.”

 

“Well I never got the chance, you know flight is very expensive but it’s so nice that ours is paid for which is actually very sweet and I’m kind of looking forward to-”

 

“Yeah I don’t care.” Jongdae deadpans. He lets out a sigh. They’re at a sort of convenience store in the airport, mainly because Kyungsoo had insisted he be prepared with all sorts of snacks and comforters. Jongdae had reluctantly agreed, only for the snacks because he absolutely hated airplane food.

 

He picks up a bag of chips, and widens his eyes in shock as he reads the price.

 

_You’ve gotta be kidding._

 

“Kyungsoo, these prices are ridiculous we shouldn’t even be buying anything.” Jongdae says. He turns around to find his friend loaded up with bags of chips, a pillow, two sleeping masks and three bottles of water.

 

“Kyungsoo what the hell?! Why do you need two sleeping masks?!” Jongdae demands, nearly yelling. Kyungsoo shrugs sheepishly, “One for me, and one for the person sitting next to me.”

 

Jongdae groans, “Fine, do whatever you want.” He mutters. Kyungsoo frowns, awkwardly, setting his pile of products down on top of a few tourist t-shirts. His friend had been pretty moody this entire time, but he didn’t really think anything of it. He thought it was just Jongdae being Jongdae.

 

“Jongdae? What’s wrong?”

 

The other man sighs for the second time, rubbing his eyes tiredly.

 

“I’m bored. Plane flights are so boring.  I mean I planned to annoy you the entire time but now we’re not sitting together and…” Jongdae trails off, biting his lip.

 

Kyungsoo nods knowingly.

 

“It’s just for 11 hours, which actually isn’t that long if you think about it.”

 

“11 hours is a long time…” Jongdae mumbles, and Kyungsoo can’t resist a small smile at how cute his friend is. Like a little kid.

 

“We’re on the same side of the plane, I’ll come hang out with you.” Kyungsoo offers, knowing this is probably enough to satisfy Jongdae.

 

“...Okay…” Jongdae gives in, smiling a little and Kyungsoo beams back at him.

 

“Great! I need your help now.” Kyungsoo says, pulling Jongdae over to him.

 

“What is it?” Jongdae asks, Kyungsoo scrunches his face up cutely, staring intently in front of him.

 

“Do I want original or sour cream and onion?” He asks seriously, pointing to two bags of chips.

 

Jongdae sighs for the third time, blatantly walking away, leaving a giggling Kyungsoo behind him. He leaves the store, and shoves his hands into his pockets, waiting for Kyungsoo to finish shopping.

 

He scans the moving crowd in front of him. People rushing to their flights, saying goodbye to their loved ones.

 

Boarding is in 10 minutes, and then it’s 11 hours of nothing.

 

_Something interesting better happen…_

\----

“About to start boarding!  Wish me luck Panda Bears! I’ll make sure to take lots and lots of videos for you guys! Love Panda! Bye bye!” Tao waves at his phone, extended by the selfie stick. His smile seems to cover his entire face. Tao brings the phone closer and stops the recording. He sighs, his smile dissipating immediately into a snarl.

 

_For fuck’s sakes._

 

It seems every vlogger out there is always bright eyed, smiling and over exaggerating all their actions just to appeal to their audience. Tao had reluctantly followed along with this trend, only seeking to gain more followers, however he soon realized this was a terrible idea.

 

He hates smiling. Despises it. People who smile always want something. No one does it because they’re genuinely happy, you can be happy in your head. But people feel the need to express their joy to the world, and there’s only one reason they would do that. To get something.

 

And the fact is Tao couldn’t care less about what other people want. It irritates him, how people expect him to care. With their pearly white teeth, and blinding smiles, and impossibly positive attitude, Tao sees through it all. And now, he has become one of them.

 

He just started out filming his wushu training drills, only wanting to inform more people about the dangerous art. But then his followers started requesting he show them his morning routine, and where he works out. This snowballed into him essentially documenting every part of his day for his audience. Although he gained popularity, it started to become impossible for him to act like himself.

 

Why Tao still put up with it, he isn’t sure. It should be easy to just stop, but he can’t seem to be able to. It’s a part of him, and whether he loves it or not, it’s the situation he finds himself stuck in.  

 

Tao grabs his luggage and gets into the line for boarding, preparing himself for all of the videos he’ll have to take in the plane.

 

He briefly hopes whoever he sits beside doesn’t mind.

 

Then again, he also couldn’t care less.

\----

_Where is he…_

 

Junmyeon sighs, spinning in his chair absentmindedly. He’s been waiting for over an hour already. His co-pilot should’ve been there already, however he’s clearly taking his sweet time.

 

_Zhang Yixing…_

 

Junmyeon knows the man had been moved to this flight at the last minute. But it still isn’t an excuse to be late, he tells himself.

 

Alone for an hour, Junmyeon had started to imagine what kind of man Yixing is. Mean? Kind? Scary? Late.

 

The door to the cockpit suddenly opens, and in stumbles someone Junmyeon can only assume to be his co-pilot, Zhang Yixing. Said man immediately drops his bag and falls forward, straight into Junmyeon’s lap. His arms are draped over the other man’s legs, and his head is resting on his thigh.

 

Junmyeon freezes, eyes wide.

 

“Uhh… Hello? Zhang Yixing?” He tentatively asks, not wanting to move and possibly hurt the other man.

 

He doesn’t get a response, instead the cockpit is filled with the sound of light snoring. Junmyeon raises his eyebrows incredulously.

 

_Is he, asleep?_

 

Junmyeon is about to shake him awake because he is not about to do all of the work that should be for two people. However he stops. Zhang Yixing, sleeping there, snoring…

 

_He looks so peaceful_

 

A smile forms on Jumyeon’s lips, as he gazes at the sleeping man and-

 

_Wait. What?!_

 

Junmyeon shakes his head, clearing his mind of these thoughts. Peaceful?! What the hell is he even thinking?! This stranger is sleeping on his lap, and all Junmyeon can think of is how peaceful he looks?!

 

Junmyeon narrows his eyes in determination, and he forces a snarl onto his lips.

 

“Hey! Zhang Yixing!” He shouts, shaking the man awake. Yixing’s eyes flutter open and he looks around for a moment. His eyes flits from side to side, trying to find the source of the noise. He doesn’t think to look above him. Upon not discovering anything, Yixing hums and rests his head back down, his eyes closing and snores once again filling the room.

 

“W-Wha… H-Hey! Y-Yixing!” Junmyeon stammers. He feels his face go red, embarrassed at the fact that he can’t even properly wake up this stranger.

 

No. This is ridiculous. He can’t just stand (sit) by.

 

His gaze hardens, and he’s about to scream into the other man’s ear when he notices how exhausted Yixing looks. There are dark bags under his eyes, and his hair looks like he hurriedly patted down. Not only that but his pilot uniform is crumpled. Junmyeon feels his face soften.

 

_I’ll let him sleep for a bit…_

\----

“Boarding pass please.” Luhan asks, his voice dull and robotic. At this point he’s just going through the motions. And as usual he gets the looks and the intense gazes. The whispers and offhand comments.

 

“Hey he’s cute…”

 

“Ask him for his number!”

 

“He’s so pretty…”

 

Luhan flips his brown hair to the side, sighing. It’s always been like this. People admiring him from afar. He’s used to it by now, but it does annoy him occasionally, when people treat him like something so unattainable. As if he’s _so great_ , so much so that they couldn’t _possibly_ talk to him.

 

Because of this, despite being at the prime age of 26, Luhan hasn’t ever been in a relationship. Unless you count the one he’s in with bubble tea, because to some, his love for the drink can be considered romantic.

 

Being a flight attendant, doesn’t exactly help his dating situation. Moving around so much doesn’t give him a chance to really spend time with someone. Although, he and Xiumin nearly started dating, it was cut off as fast as it had begun. Neither of them had felt they were right for each other. They were just two attractive guys who happened to work together and this was all they would ever be.

 

Luhan rips the boarding pass in half, handing a piece back to a stranger. A stranger. Except Luhan felt like he’s already seen them before. Luhan’s greeted all these passengers, in one form or another. Maybe they’re not the same person, but it doesn’t matter to Luhan. One look and Luhan can sort them into categories, assort them like products in a department store. Nothing new. All the same old, repackaged.

 

Routine rules in Luhan’s life. Every day the same. Everybody the same.

 

_Same same same same same_

\----

“So what kind of masochist are you?”

 

“Excuse me?”

 

Xiumin gives Sehun a skeptical look. “You look young. Smart probably. And, this is the profession you chose. So I only assumed you enjoy torturing yourself.” Xiumin explains, and Sehun softly chuckles.

 

“Should you really be saying that?” He asks, and Xiumin shrugs.

 

“Doesn’t matter to me. Anyway, if you willingly chose this job, nothing I say now will change your mind.”

 

Sehun nods. “True.”

 

“So then if you’re not a masochist, what are you? Planesexual?” Xiumin ventures, a slight tinge of mockery in his tone.

 

Sehun stops, pondering the question for a moment. “Hmm… I guess I like to travel?”

 

“Are you asking me or telling me?” Xiumin quickly replies and Sehun rolls his eyes.

 

“You sound like my mom.” He responds. “Asking you, I think. Honestly, I don’t really know why I decided to be a flight attendant… Uniforms are cool I guess.”

 

Xiumin raises an eyebrow amusedly. “The uniform is cool?”

Sehun shrugs, taking a quick look at his outfit. “It’s… Simple.” He says carefully and Xiumin snorts in response, picking at his clothes in disgust.

 

“Oh it’s more than simple. Nothing about it stands out. The colour’s an eye-catching plain brown. Despite it being a suit, you somehow feel underdressed wearing it. And on top of that, the fabric is too tight and it itches in all the wrong places.” To prove his point, Xiumin attempts to lift his arms above his head and fails miserably, earning a laugh from Sehun.

 

“Okay, yeah the uniform is terrible. I guess I just wanted something different, you know? Every flight is a new adventure, new people, new experiences.” Sehun describes, and feels his ears go red at how childish he sounds.

 

“Sure… Well let me tell you, after six years, things stop being new.” Xiumin leads Sehun through the tunnel from the airplane into the airport.

 

“Oh I don’t want to be a flight attendant for that long…” Sehun says. He doesn’t think he’d hate the job, it’s the commitment. He’d rather be hopping around, from job to job, never really settling down. This way he truly could experience everything in life.

 

Xiumin nods sadly. “That’s what I thought also. I told myself, ‘Xiumin this job is just a salary, a short term investment.’ As you can see, that didn’t really work out for me.”

 

Sehun is silent, not sure how to respond.

 

“Welcome, to the people you’ll be spending the first 11 hours of your job with.” Xiumin introduces, gesturing to the crowd of passengers shoving each other to get to the front, where Luhan awaits with a patient smile. Sehun swallows nervously.

 

“Hey Luhan!” Xiumin calls, and the brunette turns around, his smile widening at the sight of someone who isn’t a passenger.

 

Sehun is about to introduce himself, hopefully making a good first impression on the fellow crew member. He stops. Because the second his eyes meet Luhan’s, time seems to stop.

 

_He’s beautiful._


	2. Takeoff

Jongin isn’t sure when he started first being afraid of planes. His parents tell him that when he was a baby he’d always cry on planes, and this continued well into his middle school years. It never really stopped, only Jongin stopped going on planes. The last time he’d flew on one was for a mandatory high school trip, which was six years ago. Chanyeol had been with him, noticing for the first time how scared of planes Jongin is.

 

And Jongin is not ready to revisit the fear. Not only had the wedding been brought up suddenly, he couldn’t refuse when Chanyeol asked him to be the best man. And since the bride’s family refuses to travel, they are forced to fly over on an 11 hour flight.

“Boarding pass please.” The man says, and Jongin blinks at him. He barely registers how pretty the flight attendant is. All his attention is focused on the fact that  _ this is it.  _ Once he hands in his boarding pass there is no going back. 

 

He glances in panic at Chanyeol, who gives him a reassuring smile. Jongin swallows nervously and hands the boarding pass to the flight attendant. The boarding pass is ripped, Jongin stiffening at the sound. He robotically takes the cut off piece, and follows Chanyeol through what he calls the “tunnel of death.”

 

“Just breathe.” Chanyeol advises, and Jongin nods slightly. His senses feel like they’re on overdrive. He can already hear the light hum of the plane, waiting to take off. Images flash in Jongin’s mind of the plane losing power and crashing down into the water, and the flight attendant’s plastic smile as they assure him “we’re just going through some light turbulence.” Jongin focuses on his feet, trying to get rid of his morbid thoughts. Taking one step in front of the other. 

 

“Right. Left.” Jongin mumbles to himself in time with his footsteps. “Left. Right. Left.” He continues, keeping his head down, staring at the carpeted floor below him. He vaguely remembers Chanyeol reassuring him and giving him an encouraging smile, waving goodbye as they separated. He remembers a flight attendant guiding him to his seat, and passing by strangers stuffing luggage into compartments. 

 

Jongin quickly finds himself standing in front of his seat. He gratefully drops into it, not bothering to say hello to his seat partner. He immediately clicks in his seatbelt, and puts his bag on the floor in front of him, not before grabbing his earphones and phone. 

 

Jongin notices his seat partner turning towards him, probably about to speak which is exactly what he doesn’t want. Before the man beside him can get a word in, Jongin has his earphones in and is leaning back in his chair. He closes his eyes, hoping his four Xanax will somehow calm the frenzied butterflies in his stomach.

 

\----

 

Junmyeon repositions himself, his legs now sore from the weight of Yixing’s head. His movement earns a grunt from the co-pilot, and Junmyeon immediately freezes, afraid of waking the other man though he isn’t sure why. The plane will be taking off soon, and he can’t do it alone, so Yixing will have to wake up eventually. 

 

“Just a few more minutes,” Junmyeon mumbles under his breath. Despite his aching legs, and embarrassment at the whole situation, he doesn’t want this practical stranger to wake up.

 

Junmyeon tells himself it’s out of pity. He feels bad for Yixing, who probably came from a long flight and all he wanted to do was sleep and now he has to fly again. Junmyeon is doing Yixing a favour by letting him sleep. Yes. That’s it.

 

And so Junmyeon should be glad when Yixing blinks his eyes open tiredly, lifting his head slowly. Junmyeon should be thankful that his co-pilot finally woke up and no longer needs a place to lie down. Junmyeon should be happy, but as Yixing awkwardly apologizes and introduces himself, moving to sit in his co-pilot chair, Junmyeon only misses the feeling of Yixing’s head on his thigh.

 

\----

 

“Move.” Yifan commands, and the passengers in front of him immediately separate, terrified.

 

Yifan smirks. Too easy. Briefcase in hand, tightly tailored suit on, hair slicked back, Yifan is exactly where he likes to be: in power.

 

He glances at his boarding pass, and then at the numbered sign, and then at his seat. There’s already someone sitting at the window seat, irritating Yifan, but he brushes it off. 

 

Yifan takes his seat, and his seat partner gives him a polite nod, to which Yifan doesn’t respond. He learned that from his father, who told him that nodding back at someone is the same as putting yourself on their level, when you so clearly are not. And he needs to establish dominance minute one. 

 

The other man doesn’t seem to care about the unreturned nod, and instead begins applying makeup. Yifan nearly snorts in derision as the other man stares wide eyed at his hand mirror, and begins dabbing at his eye bags.

 

Whatever. It doesn’t matter to him. As long as the makeup-freak doesn’t bother him, Yifan doesn’t care. He wastes no time and pulls out the laptop from his briefcase and brings down the small table, opening his laptop and placing it on the surface. Yifan waits patiently for his device to boot up, stealing glances at the man beside him who has now moved on to a small brush and is rubbing it in a coloured palette, which he then applies to his eyelids. The man, seemingly dissatisfied with the small handheld mirror, pulls out his phone and checks his reflection in it. Yifan notices with disdain that the phone has an attached keychain, and he recognizes it as a Huang Corporation product.

 

Yifan groans, just the sight of the keychain bringing him pain. Then again, of course it’s the man applying makeup in a plane who owns a keychain from the corporation Yifan despises. The two qualities go hand in hand. 

 

Yifan curses his unluckiness, and then finds a small comfort in the fact that the other man will probably be so glued to his makeup and phone that he won’t find any time to engage in conversation. 

 

As soon as Yifan sees his laptop’s desktop loaded, he immediately opens up downloaded documents, saved emails and assignments, his fingers flying across the keyboard. 

 

“Umm, sir you can’t have your table out, or your device on for takeoff.” A flight attendant says, appearing beside Yifan. He seems nervous, probably having noticed Yifan commanding passengers to moving aside.

 

Yifan sighs, turning to the flight attendant, his eyes narrowed. “Oh Sehun, is it?”

 

“Y-Yes…” Sehun swallows nervously.

 

“First days on the job are always nerve wracking, aren’t they?”

 

Sehun widens his eyes in surprise, “How did you-”

 

“I’m a good judge of character. And if you’re as smart as you think you are, then you’ll keep walking down this aisle, and not look back.” 

 

Sehun slightly smiles, expecting the other man to suddenly burst into laughter at the joke. But instead, Yifan raises his eyebrows expectantly, his expression serious.

 

“Ummm, I…” Sehun starts confusedly. 

 

“Sehun!” 

 

Sehun turns to the sound of the voice, and he sees Xiumin waving at him from several rows down, gesturing for him to come. 

 

Sehuns glances back at Yifan, who is still staring at him, and then back at Xiumin. Eventually, frustrated, he turns away from Yifan and walks away.

 

Yifan chuckles lowly to himself, turning his attention back to the open emails on his laptop.

 

“Asshole.” The man beside him mutters.

 

“Excuse me?” 

 

The man turns to face Yifan, a smile plastered on his face. “Nothing.” He answers, and for some reason his expression only unsettles Yifan, who nods awkwardly and turns back to his laptop.

 

He’s sure the other man had said something. Maybe he had just imagined it.

 

Yifan shakes his head, concentrating on the tasks at hand. He has 11 hours on this plane ride, and that should be more than enough time to finish what he needs to do.

 

“Hi Panda Bears!” 

 

Yifan whips his head to his seat partner, who’s smiling impossibly widely at his phone, extended by a selfie stick. His voice’s freakishly high, and it grates Yifan’s ears.

 

“We’re almost taking off! I’m going to miss all of you Seoul fans, it was so great meeting you! I hope you all are having the bestest of times, and I’ll keep you all updated hourly! Love Panda! Bye bye!” He waves at the phone, blowing a kiss to it and then turns it off.

 

“Excuse me?”

 

“Yes?”

 

Yifan simply raises his eyebrows, making a vague gesture, as if to prove how inappropriate it is for him to be taking videos and talking on his phone when Yifan is clearly trying to work.

 

“Shouldn’t your laptop be off and your table put in the upright position?” The man asks, a small smirk dancing on his lips. He doesn’t wait for a response, and turns back to his phone, inspecting his reflection on the screen.

 

“You can’t be serious.” Yifan scoffs, his eyes narrow. The other man glances at him, the smirk still plastered on his face. The two lock eyes, and immediately Yifan knows he can’t lose. This always happens. In the face of Yifan’s power and superiority, people either immediately look away, or engage in a hopeless attempt to challenge authority with straight eye contact. Either way, the person meeting Yifan’s glare will look away in the end. They all do.

 

“Your laptop just crashed.” The man says.

 

Yifan quickly breaks contact, glancing at his laptop, only to find it working fine. He widens his eyes in surprise.

 

No way…

 

Yifan turns back to the other man only to find a smug expression staring back at him.

 

“Looks like I win.” The man says, winking at Yifan. Said man freezes. What just happened? This man, who just a minute ago was a squealing irritating vlogger suddenly transformed into a confident and smooth talker. And he lost. The battle of eye contact he always won. He lost.

 

Yifan looks away, focusing on his laptop, although the screen is a blur. All he can think of is the man beside him: his smirk, his wink, and his fucking keychain.

 

\----

 

Baekhyun never thought he would be sitting on an airplane grinding his crotch against the arm rest of his chair. But here he is, doing exactly that. It isn’t enough to get rid of his raging erection, but it does satisfy him enough to the point that he’s able to act somewhat naturally when his seat partner sits beside him.

 

“Byun Baekhyun.” He introduces himself, eager to get to know the other man.

 

“Park Chanyeol.” 

 

His deep voice sends shivers down Baekhyun’s spine, and he isn’t sure whether it’s because he likes it or because he’s incredibly horny, but Baekhyun wants to hear that voice for the rest of his life. Probably the latter.

 

They shake hands, Baekhyun holding on a bit longer than necessary, but Chanyeol doesn’t seem to mind. Chanyeol pulls out his phone, checking his text messages, and Baekhyun doesn’t miss this opportunity to get a good look at the man.

 

Black hair neatly swept to the side, and patted down, making his already large ears seem even bigger and monkey-like. Maybe in any other situation Baekhyun would have found the ears ridiculous, but now all he can think about is how they would feel if he bit them.

 

Baekhyun leans back in his chair, his mind already whirling with possibilities. He has 11 hours, which in itself is already a challenge, especially considering where they are.

 

“Do you mind if I lift up this armrest? It just digs into my side.” Baekhyun asks, gesturing to the armrest separating him and Chanyeol. Said man doesn’t even lift his gaze from the phone. He grunts in response, which Baekhyun takes as a yes.

 

The armrest goes up and Baekhyun smiles. He yawns, stretching his arms and legs out, subtly brushing his shoulder against the other man. No response from Chanyeol, who is still entirely captured by his phone. Baekhyun's smile quickly switches to a frown, and he glances in disappointment at Chanyeol. How oblivious is this guy?

 

“So, what brings you to L.A? Are you visiting family?” 

 

“Something like that.” Chanyeol answers, his eyes still glued to his phone.

 

“Cool…” Baekhyun awkwardly responds, turning away to look out the window, his face burning. What’s going on? Is his game off? It has been a while since he put the moves on anyone. Still, he can’t give up. This is for his boner, and there’s no way he’ll be able to sit through an 11 hour flight without ever dealing with it. Baekhyun purses his lips in determination. He has one trick left up his sleeve, a move with a 100% success rate. Although that’s because he only ever used it on one man. Who was slightly intoxicated. And also his boyfriend at the time. Either way, it’s the only way Baekhyun can think of to get his beyond unaware seat partner to spare him a glance.

 

Baekhyun stands, and presses his body against the chair in front, sliding to the side. Baekhyun thanks the Gods that he decided to wear his skinny jeans, and that Chanyeol’s limbs were particularly long, making this an almost perfect opportunity. 

 

Baekhyun’s thighs press against Chanyeol’s knees. He makes sure to stand up straight, and hopes his ass looks as good as he remembers it looking that morning.

 

This draws Chanyeol out of his trance with his phone, and he immediately readjusts himself to let Baekhyun pass. 

 

Satisfied, Baekhyun pushes himself into the aisle, and heads down to the bathroom. He waits for a minute or two, and then nods to himself.

 

Baekhyun heads back to his seat, sliding past Chanyeol this time much easier. He sits back in his seat, satisfied. He glances at Chanyeol, who had put away his phone and was now looking straight ahead. Baekhyun feels himself get excited. Maybe 11 hours would be enough to take care of his  _ problem _ .

 

\----

 

“Any problems?” Xiumin asks, gesturing for Sehun to follow him to the front of that section of the plane.

 

Sehun slowly shakes his head. “N-No, nothing.” He stutters out, still a little shaken from his interaction with the passenger. Maybe he should go back, make sure the table tray is up and the laptop is off, but his fear of the man with the narrow eyes stops him.

 

“Good. Ready?” Xiumin stands at the front. Sehun’s eyebrows furrow confusedly. 

 

“For what?” He asks, and Xiumin raises an eyebrow, his lips twitching in amusement.

 

“Your job?” 

 

Xiumin points to the empty spot in the aisle adjacent, and Sehun widens his eyes, quickly understanding the hint. A voice starts on the intercom:

 

“Attention passengers, we’ll be taking off momentarily. Please refer to the guidebook in your front pocket for information on emergency procedures, and look to the flight attendants in the aisles for a visual aid to the video. Thank you.”

 

Sehun immediately stands straight, and moves in time with the video, his hands pointing up and down and to the side in demonstration. As he goes through the moves robotically, Sehun’s mind wanders, and he pictures the most beautiful man he’s ever seen. Luhan.

 

After he had waved to the flight attendant, Xiumin had whisked him away for more tours of the aircraft and reminders of emergency procedures, but all Sehun could think about was the brunette.

 

Just like now, and as Sehun demonstrates how to inflate a lifejacket, the only thing he can think about is if Luhan is somewhere on the plane doing the same.

 

They finish with the procedures and Sehun is quickly guided through the aisle to the back of the plane where he and Xiumin strap themselves into chairs, patiently awaiting takeoff.

 

“Shouldn’t we be making sure all the passengers are ready?” Sehun asks.

 

“Luhan’s handling that, don’t worry.” Xiumin replies.

 

“Ah…” Sehun says, feeling himself blush just at the mention of the brunette’s name, which is absolutely ridiculous but he can’t stop himself. Xiumin doesn’t miss this.

 

“I saw the way you were looking at him.” 

 

“W-What do you mean, I-I wasn’t-” 

 

“Relax. I’m not judging you. But, if you want to date him, make sure it’s for the right reason.”

“What does that mean?”   
  


“Luhan!” Xiumin exclaims as the brunette slightly smiles, strapping himself into a chair opposite of Sehun. 

 

“Hey Xiumin, and…?” 

 

Sehun barely registers the other man’s voice, all he can focus on is how amazing he looks from up close. Usually people are more attractive from afar, because when you get up close you see all the small pimples, odd bumps and indents. But there are none on Luhan. He’s flawless.

 

“This man who’s very unsubtly and creepily staring at you is none other than our newest recruit, Oh Sehun.” Xiumin introduces, and this snaps Sehun out of his trance and he coughs awkwardly. He tries to extend his hand for a handshake, but only makes it halfway to Luhan’s chair. Luhan notices the gesture and moves his hand, but only barely is able to touch Sehun’s fingertips. Sehun tries to push himself as much as possible, but in the end the handshake becomes a light and horribly awkward touch.

 

“Well that was uncomfortable to watch.” Xiumin dryly comments, and Sehun laughs, his face red. Luhan only smiles. 

 

A red light begins flashing above Luhan’s head, and Sehun glances in panic at it. 

 

“Is that-”

 

“I’m on it.” Xiumin says, quickly unstrapping himself.

 

“Are you sure you don’t want me to?” Sehun asks. The thought of his first response to an emergency alarm creates butterflies in his stomach, but he has to start sometime.

 

“Any other situation I would let you handle it, but it looks like you have your hands full here.” Xiumin says. He wiggles his eyebrows suggestively at Sehun, blatantly pointing at Luhan. 

 

Sehun immediately looks away, his ears crimson from the embarrassment. Luhan softly chuckles. 

 

Xiumin winks at both of them, and then quickly walks out, making his way down the aisle.

 

“Well, that was…”  Sehun begins, not exactly sure what to say.

 

“Awkward?” Luhan finishes for him.

 

Sehun immediately nods. “So, how long have you worked here?”

“Six years, same as Xiumin.”    
  
Sehun whistles in awe, “So you met Xiumin when he was just starting out… What was he like?”

 

“Like a little dumpling.” Luhan says, and the two men share a look for a second before bursting out into laughter.

 

“No way…” Sehun manages to gasp out.

 

“I’m serious! He had chubby round cheeks and would always be smiling and so he looked like-”

 

“A dumpling.” 

 

“Yeah!” Luhan exclaims, his smile wide. “But don’t call him that, or he’ll kill you.” He warns.

 

Sehun nods, “If anyone’s capable of murder, it’s definitely Xiumin.” 

 

Luhan laughs, “You’re funny.”

 

“I’m not just funny.” Sehun suddenly says, his expression serious. This is it. He locks eye contact with Luhan. The other man eventually breaks into an oddly melancholy smile.

 

“Sehun, I’m not… I’m not looking for a relationship right now.” He says, and Sehun can’t stop the disappointed frown from forming.

 

“Oh…”

 

“I’m sorry, it’s just this job, you know? Doesn’t really leave time for anything else.” Luhan explains, the words smoothly flowing out, as if they’ve been rehearsed.

 

“No, yeah I get it.” Sehun quickly says, forcing a tight smile. He glances bitterly at where Xiumin had left, wishing he was the one who responded to the passenger alarm. 

 

\----

 

“What seems to be the problem sir?” Xiumin asks.

 

Jongdae gestures to the empty seat beside him. “They closed the doors. Am I sitting alone?” 

 

“That’s what it seems like sir.” 

 

“Well what? Did the guy just not show? Did anyone even book this seat?” Jongdae questions, frustration creeping into his voice.

 

“I don’t know sir.” Xiumin answers patiently, already growing tired of Jongdae.

 

“Isn’t it your job to know?” 

 

“Let me ask you something, sir. In the job description of being a passenger on an airplane, does it include anything about having someone sit beside you?” Xiumin asks.

 

“Excuse me?”

 

“Job descriptions are pretty arbitrary, don’t you think? I’m a flight attendant, but I don’t know about a passenger’s whereabouts. You’re a lone passenger, but you activated a personal emergency alarm because you felt lonely. Why don’t we forgive both our transgressions and allow the plane to takeoff?” 

 

Jongdae is too shocked to respond, and this gives Xiumin a chance to say a final “have a nice flight sir”, before making his way back down the aisle. 

 

The shocked expression on Jongdae’s face doesn’t leave even as he slowly buckles his seatbelt in. The announcement for takeoff barely registers in his mind, which is fully occupied by the interaction he just had. Was he just insulted? Sassed? Judged? Whatever the interaction was, Jongdae can come to one conclusion: it definitely was not boring.

 

\----

 

“Xiumin!” Sehun calls out excitedly. 

 

“Oh no, Luhan what did you do?” Xiumin sighs, dropping into his chair and strapping himself in.

 

“How was the passenger?” Luhan asks, ignoring Xiumin’s question.

 

“Fine. Just some loner complaining about the empty seat beside him.” Xiumin explains. “I might’ve been a bit harsh on him…” He adds with just a tinge of regret. “So what happened here?” 

 

“Ah well-” Sehun starts awkwardly, but is quickly interrupted.

 

““Attention passengers, we’ll be taking off momentarily. Please lock your seatbelt in, and make sure your belongings are under the chair in front, or in the storage compartment. Please refer to the guidebook in your front pocket for information on emergency procedures. Thank you.” 

 

“Here we go. Ready for your first flight, Sehun?” 

 

Sehun swallows thickly, his early humiliation still sitting with him. “Yep.” He answers.

 

Xiumin glances confusedly at Luhan, who just shrugs with a sheepish smile. This earns a groan from Xiumin, and he shuts his eyes tight, already thinking that this flight will definitely feel longer than it’s supposed to.

 

\----

 

“Do you have any gum? It’s the only thing I forgot.”

 

Jongin takes an earbud out and glances over at the man sitting beside him. He shakes his head. “No sorry.”

 

“Ah it’s alright.”

 

Jongin places the earbud back in, and turns up the volume on his phone. He closes his eyes, letting the soft acoustic guitar fill his ears, hoping to somehow sleep through takeoff. Experience tells him this is a useless endeavour as the anxiety and fear of flying usually makes sleeping the last thing on his mind. But, if he forces himself into a quick nap while they are still on the ground, he might be able to avoid the terrifying incline as the plane took off, the mind numbing ear pain, and occasional horrifying shake of the plane that the flight attendants brush off as just “turbulence.” 

 

Jongin’s attempt to relax, however, is quickly cut short by a poke on his shoulder. 

 

He once again takes an earbud out and opens his eyes, glancing over to find the man smiling eagerly.

 

“Isn’t this so exciting?” The man’s eyes are twinkling, and Jongin can’t imagine what his life had been like if a plane ride is this thrilling. He shrugs in response.

 

“Sure.” 

 

“I mean, I guess for people who’ve been on plane rides, it’s just like, whatever,” The man continues, ignoring Jongin’s lack of enthusiasm, “But for me, I mean I’ve never been on a plane and- like, isn’t this amazing? We’re about to fly. Literally fly.” 

 

Jongin gives a small smile, and speaks with a little more excitement, mostly just to get the other man to stop talking. “Yeah, we are in a plane.” He states, then adds, “Literally, a plane.”

 

The other man doesn’t notice the sarcasm. He is instead focused on the view outside the window, his mouth open in what Jongin assumes to be over-exaggerated awe. He wonders what can possibly be so captivating about pavement and a bunch of workers waving sticks around to guide planes, but doesn’t dwell on it. He and his seat partner just have different tastes, that is all.

 

Jongin pauses for a moment, earbud in hand, expecting the other man to turn around and continue talking. But after a minute of background chatter and the steady hum of the engine, the man’s eyes are still trained on what is beyond the window. Jongin gladly places his earbud back in his ear. He lets out a sigh, closing his eyes. All he has to do was fall asleep…

 

“I’m Kyungsoo by the way.”

 

Jongin’s eyes shoot open. He tears out his earbud, and whips his head around, glaring at Kyungsoo. “Kyungsoo? Shut up. Thanks.” 

 

Kyungsoo widens his eyes. He frowns, and then manages a soft smile, lips trembling, “Sorry.” There are tears gathering at the edges of his eyes, but he quickly looks away and wipes them with his hand, focusing on the window. 

 

Jongin puts his earbud back in, turns the volume up all the way, and shuts his eyes, but all he can see is Kyungsoo’s apologetic expression, on the verge of crying. Jongin sighs. He shouldn’t have said that. Kyungsoo’s just excited, and Jongin had to go and make him cry on his first flight ever. 

 

Jongin opens his eyes, glancing over at Kyungsoo, who’s still looking out the window. He opened his mouth to apologize, but was cut off by a lady on the intercom.

 

“Attention passengers, we’ll be taking off momentarily. Please refer to the guidebook in your front pocket for information on emergency procedures. Thank you.” 

 

Jongin’s mouth goes dry.

 

Taking off? Emergency procedures?

 

He grabs his seatbelt and fastens it, pulling it as tight as possible, the leather digging deep into his hip. Jongin briefly considers opening the guidebook, but the thought leaves his mind as soon as it enters. He is not going to read about all the ways he can die.

 

The plane starts to turn around, and Jongin tightly bites his lip. He clutches onto the arm rests, knuckles white. His feet are bouncing up and down on the floor. Jongin is trembling. 

 

He suddenly wishes Kyungsoo would turn around and start talking to him. Jongin wishes Kyungsoo would annoy him with his childlike glee, his twinkling eyes, anything to distract him from the fact that he’s in a plane and it’s about to take off and it’s becoming harder and harder to breathe and Jongin’s panicking because the walls of the plane are closing in on him and the floor beneath is opening up and he’s falling and-

 

“Are you okay?”

 

The walls freeze, and then start to open up again. The floor stills, and Jongin finds himself able to breathe again. He slowly turns around to see Kyungsoo nervously watching him, his eyes puffy. 

 

Jongin’s expression must be one of horror because Kyungsoo immediately looks away, shamefully. He chuckles awkwardly. “Wow, I really can’t take a hint can I?”

 

Jongin is suddenly reminded of what he had said, and a wave of guilt washes over him. His face softens, and he surprises himself with a genuine smile. “That’s okay.” 

 

“What?” 

 

“Talk to me. I don’t mind. I’m sorry, about, you know…” 

 

Kyungsoo shakes his head.“It’s alright, I get it. I was being annoying.”

 

Jongin raises his eyebrows, staying silent.

 

“So… I take it you don’t love planes?” Kyungsoo asks, and this earns a small chuckle from Jongin.

 

“What gave it away?”

 

“You haven’t let go of the arm rests. You know they’re not going anywhere right?” 

 

Jongin laughs again, this time louder. It feels good. Kyungsoo giggles, and Jongin likes the way it sounds.

 

“So what is it?” Kyungsoo asks, turning his body to face Jongin. 

 

“Hm?” Jongin hums questioningly.

 

“Your feelings about planes. A longtime grudge? Hate? Or just a general dislike?”

 

“Ah.” Jongin nods, considering it for a moment. “Hate is a strong word. I’d use a stronger one, like bane of my existence?”

 

Kyungsoo laughs again. “Wow… Well I can’t pretend like I understand that.” 

 

“It’s alright. I don’t know, just, something about not being in control, putting my life in someone else’s hands, it freaks me out.” Jongin explains.

 

“Yeah but they’re professionals.”

 

“I know, I know, it’s kind of stupid. But I mean you can’t deny that takeoff and landing are pretty damn terrifying. I mean for those moments, it all becomes real, the fact that we’re in a machine above ground, somehow flying on what I really can only assume is like, magic, or something.” 

 

“Well you already made it through the terrifying part, and you seem fine to me.” Kyungsoo observes. He turns around to peer at the clouds outside the window. Jongin widens his eyes in surprise.

 

“W-What?” He stutters out. 

 

Kyungsoo glances over his shoulder. “Yeah, we finished take off just a few minutes ago.” He explains, and then turns back to the window.

 

Jongin freezes, the words not making sense. How did they finish take off? Weren’t they just on the ground a minute ago? All he can remember is the walls closing in on him, the floor falling beneath him and then-

 

“Hey look, I think I see my house!” Kyungsoo exclaims, pointing at a vague spot on the window, his smile widening. “I mean obviously it’s not exactly my house but it looks similar!” He adds. Jongin stays silent, still trying to figure out exactly what is going on. Kyungsoo seems to notice this, because a concerned look flashes over his face.

 

“Hey, are you okay?” He asks, and with no response from Jongin, a frown crosses Kyungsoo’s lips. “Oh… Did I talk too much again?” He asks, his eyes downcast.

 

Jongin is drawn out of his trance by Kyungsoo’s question. He blinks his eyes a couple times, and then vigorously shakes his head at Kyungsoo. “N-No, you didn’t.” He assures, and is oddly relieved as Kyungsoo’s impending frown disappears, and is quickly replaced by a bright smile.

 

“You didn’t…” Jongin repeats to himself. He watches Kyungsoo as he pointed out different things through the window. And suddenly something starts to unfurl inside him. A feeling he can’t quite place his finger on. It is different, and as it begins to blossom inside Jongin, he feels a comfort in its presence. 

 


End file.
